Overview of IRF Secretariat:
At International Religious Freedom (IRF) Secretariat we manage IRF Roundtables, which are vital and influential civil society-led religious freedom advocacy entities. We believe everyone has a seat at the table and we should work with one another to end persecution of religions. Notably, the U.S. Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Office, USAID, and the U.S. Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) have partnered with the Roundtable to exchange information about emerging trends, identify worldwide partners, and relay information on existing programs. There are currently 35 different IRF Roundtables across the world. To find out more about the IRF Roundtable please visit here: https://www.irfroundtable.org/
On top of running and expanding IRF Roundtables, we also co-host the yearly IRF Summit with former Ambassador for Religious Freedom Sam Brownback and Katrina Lantos Swett, head of the Lantos Foundation. You can find out more about the IRF Summit at the following link: https://irfsummit.com/
If the intern lives in the Washington, D.C. area, they will benefit from in-person mentoring and meetings with government officials or roundtable partners. Interns will also attend and participate in weekly (remote) meetings with hundreds of prominent advocacy organizations and government officials. IRF Secretariat is looking for candidates who are passionate about learning about, promoting, and preserving religious freedom for everyone—from Atheists to Zoroastrians.
In exchange for 15 - 20 hours a week, the intern will be exposed to some of the most compelling cases for the defense of human rights worldwide, meet government and NGO officials, interact with senior international religious freedom advocates including former and current government officials, and learn what it is like to run an international human rights nonprofit. This position is unpaid, however, we are happy to work with schools so you can receive academic credit for this internship.
